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Landscaping Design Themes
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You wouldn't expect to find sushi on the menu of an authentic Italian restaurant, would you? Likewise, a gargoyle water spout in Oriental landscape designs would stick out like the Pope in a nudist camp. Not that such anomalies do not happen to some home landscapes.
As a matter of fact, if you look around your neighborhood, you might find landscape designs that look like a hodge-podge of disjointed features put together without much thought.
Confused landscapes are generally the result of a lack of theme in landscape designs. |
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Creating landscape designs that revolve around a theme helps weave a thread of unity among the various elements, plants, and structures of a landscape. Focusing on a theme engenders consistency and harmony in landscaping designs. Furthermore, themes make the task of choosing hardscapes and softscapes easier because they give you a set of ground rules to follow. Many do-it-yourselfers get stumped on deciding which theme to build their landscaping designs on, and with good reason. Themes set the scenery for the landscape and can either make or break your landscape designs. The most common themes in landscape designs are those that celebrate a season, suggest a mood, and stimulate activity. Choosing a theme for your landscape designs requires a thorough reflection on your reason for improving your home landscape. Your landscape's intended purpose will guide you to the appropriate theme for your landscape designs.
Landscaping designs are often crafted to make plants and trees look their best during a certain time of the year. Generally, the garden is where the seasonal theme is most prominent in landscaping designs. Because of its association with bloom, hope, and renewal, spring is easily one of the popular themes for landscape designs. Spring-themed landscape designs come alive with the vibrant colors of early-blooming perennials and bulbs. Summer is another favorite theme for landscaping designs. Summer-blooming flower bulbs, perennials, and annuals explode in all colors of nature's palette in summer-themed landscaping designs. The changing color of trees and foliage intensifies the drama of fall in autumn landscaping designs. Fall calls for plenty of landscape maintenance, and landscape designs should accommodate many behind-the-scenes garden activities such as composting, mulching, and leaf-raking. Winter landscaping designs evoke a feeling of meditation and quietude because of the austere atmosphere summoned by bare trees and snow-covered ground. Evergreens, hardy ornamental grasses, and berries bring exuberance to the otherwise stark elegance of white snow.
Some landscape designs highlight the inextricable bond between landscapes and emotions. Landscape designs induce a feeling or emotion through details that range from the choice of blooms to the presence of unique garden ornaments. In landscaping designs, a beautiful rose garden may provoke a viewer to entertain notions of romance, while a tranquil Zen rock garden may put one in a contemplative mood. Color in landscape designs also influences the viewer's mood. Landscaping designs should never concentrate on one color or hue. Flowers of different colors can blend harmoniously in landscape designs and evoke congruous emotions. In landscaping designs, green is believed to have a healing effect, red and orange rouse excitement and energy, and blue relaxes and refreshes. Lines in landscape designs also affect the viewer's state of mind. Straight lines in landscape designs may suggest formality and structure, while curved lines are perceived as natural, relaxing, and even playful.
Aside from aesthetically pleasing, practical and livable are the other characteristics of good landscaping designs. Landscapes should not only make one's surroundings beautiful; they should serve a meaningful or pragmatic purpose as well. Landscape designs that encourage activity are the best examples of theme following purpose in landscape planning. Numerous landscaping designs revolve around a hobby or practical pursuit. Generally, properties owned by families with children employ activity-themed landscaping designs that allow for plenty of play and recreation. An outdoor dining area, a swimming pool, and a small playground are just some of the ways families implement activity-themed landscaping designs. Landscape designs centered on a hobby are also popular. People who love to cook might want a vegetable garden included in landscaping designs, while bird-watchers would do well to create landscape designs that nurture a bird-friendly habitat. Activity-themed landscaping designs encourage homeowners to spend more time outdoors and make optimal use of their landscapes.
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